Radebe slates escape of ‘most wanted’

Justice Minister Jeff Radebe has slammed the escape of dangerous fugitive Bongani Moyo, who walked out of the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.

Radebe said he would raise the matter at the next justice cluster meeting. This was to have protocols introduced to regulate the conduct of all officials who interacted with detainees while they were being processed in the criminal justice system.

“I call on all officials in the criminal justice cluster to exercise caution, diligence and to be alert at all times when managing facilities to ensure that escapes – similar to the one involving Moyo and all others – are brought to an end without delay.

“I am aware that an investigation, internal and criminal, has been initiated (into Moyo’s escape).

“We hope the police will get to the bottom of this as soon as possible,” Radebe said.

He also called for anyone found to be responsible for having helped Moyo escape to be punished.

“Moyo must be rearrested (soon) and those who make escapes of this nature possible must be flushed out of the system and face the consequences of their actions,” he said.

Police said on Thursday there were no new developments in efforts to find Moyo. There were still no answers as to how Moyo managed to escape despite his “extremely dangerous” status and the fact that he had escaped from prison before.

Moyo, who is facing charges of armed robbery and has been linked to more than 30 bank robberies since 2006, escaped from custody for the second time this year.

Despite being categorised by the SAPS as one of the country’s most wanted criminals, Moyo escaped from the city court.

Police spokeswoman Captain Katlego Mogale could not say on Thursday when they expected the investigation into the escape to be completed.

Moyo is believed to have escaped through Court 16 after simply walking from an area next to the holding cells as he was not in the cell with other prisoners.

The DA has called for the suspension of those police officers whose probable negligence might have led to the escape of one of the country’s most wanted criminals. DA Gauteng safety and security spokeswoman Kate Lorimer said Moyo’s escape made a mockery of the SAPS.

She questioned why Moyo was left unattended, whose responsibility it was to guard him and why he was not handcuffed or shackled since he was considered a dangerous criminal.

“The excuse that he was on crutches is not good enough. Police say that initial investigations show there was negligence. Provincial commissioner (Mzwandile) Petros must now take appropriately serious disciplinary action against those responsible.

“They should be suspended forthwith. An example needs to made of them,” said Lorimer.

Police must establish whether the escape was simply someone not following orders or if there were no protocols in place to deal with injured or ill prisoners, she said.

“If there are no protocols, why not, and which senior officer should have put those protocols in place? Someone must be held accountable.

“It is embarrassing in the extreme that our police seem unable to understand the importance of ensuring that a criminal of Moyo’s calibre is securely escorted.”

An eyewitness apparently told police that Moyo was carrying a pile of papers when he left the court. The crutches he was walking with when he appeared in court were found with one of his co-accused.

Moyo, Leon Ncube, 27, Thabani Sibanda, 27, and Khubulani Sibanda, 30, appeared on charges of robbery with aggravating circumstances and possession of unlicensed firearms.

The four allegedly robbed a Standard Bank branch in Hatfield and made off with about R38 000 in cash.

Ncube was also appearing on a charge of attempted murder after he allegedly tried to run over a police officer with a car and crashed into a police vehicle at the Safari Hotel in Hillbrow, Joburg.

Meanwhile, police are offering a R50 000 reward for the rearrest of Moyo. SMS Crime Line at 32211 (volunteer your name and telephone number to qualify for the reward) or call Crimestop at 086 001 0111. - Pretoria News

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